To Place The Pawns
by XvBrokenvX
Summary: Gibbs has a lot of enemies. When an arms dealer decides Gibbs has to pay for sending his boss to jail, he attacks the team one by one. Ziva,Abby,Tony,McGee,and Ducky:breaking them from the inside out. Tiva, McAbby. Rated 4 rape and violence.Review Please!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N This is set while Ziva was not working as a field agent. **

**~-~**

Ziva sat with her face squinted in frustration. The usual "Grab your gear," from Gibbs sent the team into action after a dead marine. Ziva tried to tag along but Gibbs caught her before she had even stood up. So the team had left her behind again, though not without much protest. There was simply no reasoning with Gibbs, although Ziva was, by far, the best at it. She still lost when it came to Gibbs.

The agency was almost empty as people left for the night. Sure, Ziva enjoyed the sounds of silence, but after years of being on this team, she had to admit that sometimes she would miss the bickering of the team; _her_ team. _Well, you only miss it when it's not there_, she reasoned.

Ziva was actually bored. She had done all the desk work for the case already, and even looked it over several times. She could find nothing else to do.

She was angry, mainly at herself, for leaving the team. Even though it was just for a short while, Gibbs wouldn't let her out on any field work. Ducky insisted that she had been through more than she let on. _Which is true_, Ziva thought to herself,_ but it was none of their business what I have gone through. _

The very feeling of not being useful, the knowledge that she was being left behind due to lack of trust: that ripped her apart. Ziva rested her head on her hands with boredom as she watched the last of the workers leave.

"Still here, Ziva?" The director asked on his way out.

"I am waiting for Gibbs to return. They are still working on a case," Ziva responded in her thick accent.

"Well… goodnight then," The director said heading towards the elevator.

Her phone rang with a text from Tony:

**Case closed. Gibbs got the guy already. R u still work?**

She texted back a 'yes' and got a response that she should go home, they'd be back soon and it was pointless to wait around.

Following Tony's advice for once, Ziva headed for her car. The parking lot air was cold and damp from the rain that just pasted earlier that day. Ziva sighed, unlocking her car door. She hated being so out of the group. A slight sound caused Ziva to turn around quickly.

"Who is there?" Ziva called out.

No response came. Ziva's eyes scanned the darkness. There! A dark shadow skipped across a nearby car. Ziva hardened her expression, trying to find the shadow again. There was a quick thought in her mind that this was an animal.

_I should call for help_, she thought, her hand reaching for her phone. _No, they're busy wrapping up the case. I can deal with this myself. I can take care of myself._

"Who is there?" she demanded, "Show yourself!"

There was a deep, amused chuckle, and Ziva spun around trying to find the source. Every shadow seemed ready to attack, every car (though there were few left) looked like the hiding spot of someone ready to jump out at her. Ziva's brown eyes scanned over everything. Her heart sped up as fear trickled up her spine. _No,_ she thought to herself, _fear is unacceptable. Concentrate. Stay focused. _Uncertainty was one of the few things that scared her though.

"Who is there?" Ziva called again into the darkness. Her hand pulled out her gun and aimed it blindly. "Who is there?! What is it you want?"

There was a laugh again, a deep laugh. _A man,_ Ziva thought to herself_, presumably in his thirties of forties._

"Ziva," an unknown voice spoke. Ziva whirled around, her gun raised, trying to locate it, "Where is Agent Gibbs when you need him?"

There was a sound of footsteps behind her and Ziva spun to face them. Then the bushes to her left rustled and she aimed her gun towards them. There were too many sounds at once and Ziva moved towards every one of them. Then there was that laugh. That mimicking laugh echoed through the night. A sharp pain came to the back of her head. And then, there was darkness.


	2. Chapter 2

Ziva woke up to damp, cold air around her. Her hands were tingling and she realized the ropes binding them together cut off her circulation. Her legs were tied to the legs of the chair (left leg to the left chair leg, right leg to the right chair leg). She let out a small cough that raised in her throat. She heard shifting behind her but she couldn't turn her head far enough to see.

"Ziva David, I never expected you to be so vunerable," a man's voice spoke. She could feel his breath as he whispered in her ear, "so easy. So helpless."

"Who are you?" She demanded quickly.

"Temper," He said with a laugh. Ziva could tell already that he was enjoying his power.

"What do you want with me?" her voice was very low. She has dealt with psychotic men before and the low voice always helps. _I just have to wait it out. Gibbs will find me soon. _She told herself. For some reason she doubted it though. Gibbs would not even let her on field work, why would he come help her?

"Leroy. Jethro. Gibbs." He responded, lifting her chin as he spoke.

"Do not touch me," Ziva said fiercely. She heard a loud slap sound before she felt the stinging in her face.

"I will do what I want. Do not tempt me to prove that to you," He responded. Ziva could taste blood collecting in her mouth and realized she had bit her tongue. He leaned forward, touching her chin again as if her were examining her.

It was times like these that Ziva was happy she grew up around guys. With perfect aim, she spit the blood that was collecting in her mouth directly onto his face. She watched anger build up in his eyes. His hand reached behind him and she saw a fimiliar glimmer of silver: a knife. Fear trickled up her spine but she kept a solid face. She refused to give him the satisfaction of seeing her scared.

She closed her eyes in pain as the knife dug into her stomach. He took his time too. It was clear the stab wasn't random: he thought carefully about where the knife would go in so that it wouldn't kill her.

~-~-~-~

Tony aimed slowly. _Focus...focus...._His crumbled up paper was just about to leave his fingers for the trash can when Abby jumped in front to him.

"Tony!"

The paper fell to the floor, missing the garbage by an inch. "Yes, Abby?" Tony said through his teeth.

"Where's Ziva?" Abby said curiously. She had her head tilted to the side in wonder.

"Zee-vah is late," He said, breaking up her name as he often did.

"Well I told her to call me last night when she was almost home because I had this thing to give her and -" Abby said in one syllable.

McGee cut her off from his desk, "Ziva's not late? Her car was in the lot when I pulled in."

"Well see what time she got here McGee!" Abby said jumping over to his desk.

"What difference does that make?" Tony said bored.

"Because then we can follow the security camera up till now and find out where she is! I got her this thing she's going to love!" Abby said, throwing her arms in the air with excitment.

Tony's raised an eyebrow, "What thing?"

Abby smiled for a minute before turning to McGee, "Please Tim?"

McGee sighed. Of course he'd never say no to Abby, the girl of his dreams. He accessed the parking lot security. Abby leaned over his shoulder watching the cameras rewind. _10am...9am.... 8am.... 7am.....6am....5am... _

"Wow, she came in early," McGee said with a confused face.

_4am....3am... 2am...._

"2am? What was she doing here at two in the morning?" McGee thought outloud.

By now curiosity had gotten the best of Tony and he was peering over McGee's shoulder too. Finally, people came on the camera. The time read 12:35am and the team watched in horror as a shadow figure carried Ziva off the screen.

The team stared at the screen in shock.

"Grab your gear," Gibbs voice suddenly came to them, "Dead Marine in - _what are you three doing?_" Gibbs sounded angry at the last part; he did not like being ignored.

"Boss, you should see this," McGee said, pulling the video up to the screen.

Gibbs watched the video emotionlessly. "DiNozzo, go process the scene. McGee, contact the agency's security guards who were working last night. Abby try to clear up that video. I want a face with an ID."

"On it!" Abby said, faking a smile and taking short quick steps to the elevator.

"On it, boss," McGee said after she left. He began going through agency files to see who was working that night.

"DiNozzo, go!" Gibbs yelled, slapping the back of Tony's head. Tony's eyes were still on the screen.

"...on it, boss," Tony said distractedly. His eyes didn't leave the screen as he walked into the elevator.

He got to her car quickly. _I should have realized this sooner. I only park THREE SPOTS DOWN. How could I not notice her car as I pulled in? Why didn't I notice she wasn't here? She always beat me to work, even when she jogs here. How could I not know?!_

There was light traces of blood on the floor as Tony roped of the scene with the Crime Scene yellow tape. He looked all he could but the most he could find was light traces of blood, which he took samples of.

Finally giving up, he glanced at her car, wondering if he should move it to evidence lock up. A small note on the windshield caught his attention and he picked it up with his gloves.

_Gibbs: Am I winning yet?_

_-J. _

Tony bagged the note and carried it up with the rest of the evidence. He was dazed out though. All he could think was that she could be dead right now because HE hadn't noticed her car when he was leaving last night.

Tony sighed to himself, _Ziva. _

**~-~**

**Thanks for all those that added me to their story alert list!! The next chapter should be up by... Sunday. I'm aiming for Friday though. I had this story all done too T.T Stupid computer just **_**had**_** to crash. I'll rewrite it though =) No worries. **

**I AM hoping for more reviews though. I take anonymous reviews too, so please please please?? I love hearing what you guys think! **


	3. Chapter 3

Gibbs flashed his ID, "NCIS, do you mind if I look around?"

"What are you looking for?" A man answered. He was tall with light brown hair and thin metal glasses.

"There have been a few robberies in the area. We just wanted to look around the house, make sure everything is secured correctly," Tony said walking in.

"What's NCIS?"

"Neighborhood Crime Investigation Specialists," Gibbs answered quickly. The two of them searched the house quickly for any sign of Ziva.

"This house is good boss," Tony said coming in from the other room.

Gibbs nodded in agreement, "You're fine." He left before the man could respond.

"That's the fourteenth house today," Tony complained, "Are we going to check the house of _everyone_ that matched the mans description?"

"Yes, DiNozzo," Gibbs responded in annoyance.

"Boss, we'd get further if we waited behind at NCIS, Abby will have news for us," Tony responded. They would never find Ziva at this rate.

"I can't just _sit there_," Gibbs yelled, "We're going to keep looking." They drove to the next house on the list. "Let's go."

Gibbs rang the door bell and glanced at Tony. Tony was busy trying to peek through the dusty basement windows.

"Can I help you?" A man said from the doorway. He was the same height as Gibbs. His dark brown hair fell lightly around his tan face as he smiled welcomingly.

"NCIS, can we have a look around?" Gibbs said robotically.

"And _why_ does the Naval Criminal Investigative Service wish to look around?" The man asked. Tony glanced at Gibbs nervously but Gibbs didn't miss a beat.

"There are a lot of robberies in the area, the suspect is a marine so it is our case," Gibbs said with a warm (fake) smile.

"Do you have a warrant," the man responded.

"We are just trying to make your life easier, sir," Gibbs said with another smile, "We would like to make sure your house is secure."

"Your window over there already doesn't have a lock, I'd get one," Tony said pointing. He was right: it was clear from across the room the window's lock had been taken off for some reason or another.

"Oh?" The man said glancing over. He smiled happily, "Well, please, come in. I am Jason, by the way. Jason Scotts. Would you like some coffee or anything?"

"We're fine," Gibbs responded quickly, glancing around the first room. The sound of something falling caught their attention. "Is anyone else here?" Gibbs asked.

"Just my cat and I. My wife is on vacation with her friends. Girls trip to California," He laughed. A small orange cat came running from the direction of the sound. The man quickly hurried into the back room and when Gibbs entered he saw him fixing a picture on top of his computer desk. "That silly cat gets into everything. That's my wife, there. Eliza." He pointed to the picture.

Gibbs nodded and the search began. Tony's eyes darted around the first floor while Gibbs checked the upstairs. Tony sighed, "You're good, just make sure you lock up that window." Tony smiled politely and followed Gibbs out the door.

"Next house," Gibbs responded.

~-~

"Your window over there already doesn't have a lock, I'd get one," Tony's voice came. Ziva looked up to the ceiling in anticipation. _That's Tony. He is right upstairs. _

"Tony!" Ziva screamed. "I am here!" With the lack of reaction, Ziva realized he could not hear her. Her voice wasn't very loud though, her throat was too dry for yelling any louder. Ziva tried to ignore it but her efforts were pointless.

Ziva thought as quickly as she could. Her hands were tied. Her feet were tied to the chair. What could she do?

"Oh? Well, please, come in. I am Jason, by the way. Jason Scotts. Would you like some coffee or anything?" Ziva recognized him as the one who had grabbed her. She made a silent prayer for a second that they would not accept anything from him that could be drugged.

"We're fine," Gibbs familiar voice called out. Ziva looked up again hopefully. Surely Gibbs would pick up on the smallest thing. Ziva pushed all her body weight back as hard as she could. The chair fell the floor painfully but it cause a small _bang_.

"Is anyone else here?" Gibbs asked. _He heard it, _Ziva crossed her fingers. Her eyes remained fixed on the staircase, praying she'd see him come down any second.

"Just my cat and I. My wife is on vacation with her friends. Girls trip to California." There were quick footsteps from one side of the ceiling to the other. Slower footsteps followed them. "That silly cat gets into everything. That's my wife, there. Eliza."

Minutes stretched on as Ziva listened to footsteps shuffling about. She tried to flip her chair again but it wasn't turning. Finally she heard the words she was dreading: You're good, just make sure you lock up that window." Tony's voice seemed to echo through the house.

"I'M HERE! GIBBS! TONY!" Ziva whisper-yelled desperately. She shook her body in the chair wanting to make any noise she could. "Please, Gibbs I am here." She could barely hear her own voice by now as she heard the door close.

Loud footsteps echoed from the upstairs and she heard the door open. Now she was in trouble.

The footsteps made their way down the stairs slowly. Ziva glanced up at the man. "Did you think that was _clever?_ He yelled, as he pulled her up by her hair. His hands moved down to her arms and he ripped her right out of the seat, the ropes burning her legs as they broke off.

He pushed her to the floor and pulled out that dreaded knife, "I told you to say quiet. I told you I will do what I want. You know I get my way by now. I told you not to tempt me to prove it!" The knife sliced quickly but Ziva realized she felt no pain. Every cut was placed perfectly so that her cloths fell right off. She tried to turn to cover herself but he held her firmly below him.

"I told you not to tempt me," He repeated. Two fingers went into her and she shut her eyes, turning her head away. He slowly dragged a lazy hand up her thigh, resting much too high for comfort. With her hands still tied together, Ziva tried to swing them like a bat in some attempt to fight back but he caught them too easily and bent them painfully next to her.

Slowly, he brought himself on top of her, eyes relishing the sight beneath him. His lips crashed against hers forcefully. With him on top of her, Ziva could hardly move. She could not decide which was worse: what was coming or knowing she couldn't stop it.

**Thanks for all the reviews =D hoping for more if that's not too much 2 ask =)**


	4. Chapter 4

**AN:**

**I was going to wait till Friday but... you guys all made me so happy with the reviews so here you go! **

**Just wanted to say: so many of you hit this right on the nose! Of COURSE Tony and Gibbs will come back! They always follow their guts!!!  
**

The wind whipped by Gibbs as he made a sharp turn. A car behind him honked that Gibbs cut him off but Gibbs ignored it.

"Boss," Tony said as Gibbs drove up the block quickly, "Something doesn't feel right."

"Trust your gut, DiNozzo."

"...basement windows. Boss! There is a basement at that house!" Tony realized suddenly. He knew something wasn't right.

"I know," Gibbs said calmly.

"We have to go back," Tony replied. For some reason, Tony knew Ziva was in that house.

"We are."

"Why are you driving away then?" Tony said, looking back at the house, _If I jump out, I could probably run back pretty fast..._

"When he thinks we're gone, he'll go down to the basement and try to move her in case we decide to come back," Gibbs explained. "We go around the block once. You take the back door, I'll take the front. If we're lucky, he'll already be in the basement."

"But-" Tony began to ask.

"The basement door was hidden, DiNozzo," Gibbs said before Tony even asked.

His car made another sharp turn as he flew around the block faster than even Ziva drives. Then, at the drop of a dime, stopped short outside the house without a sound. He got out of the car, gun in hand, and pointed to the back way. Tony nodded and jogged lightly around the house.

"Now!" Gibbs yelled over the house. Tony kicked in the back door and he heard Gibbs kick in the front door too. Gibbs walked forward with his gun raised and Tony searched the room he was in with a quick glance. They went room to room trying to find the entrance to the basement. A loud slamming sound caused Tony to look out the window. They could see Jason Scotts running in his yard, hopping over the fence to get out. Ziva wasn't with him.

"Tony, find Ziva!" Gibbs yelled quickly, chasing the man out through the back door. Tony continued his search. He finally found the door. It was more of a crawl space really but it lead to a large staircase. He had to crawl under the computer desk just to get through it. He kept his gun raised until he saw Ziva. She was laying undressed on the floor, scraps of cloths and pools of blood around her. Tony's gun went away at once and he pulled of his jacket, wrapping it around her.

"Tony?" Ziva whispered, half conscious at this point.

"Hang in there, I got you," Tony said back quickly, lifting her up. He carried her up the stairs and pulled her through the crawlspace. Gibbs was making his way into the room as Tony was picking her up.

"Is she alright?" Gibbs asked. He was poker faced as usual but Tony could tell he was worried. He nodded even though he wasn't sure.

"We have to get her to a hospital," Tony said quickly.

"...no hospital," Ziva mumbled, "please, no hospital." Tony looked to Gibbs but he just nodded.

"Let's get out of here."

**~-~**

**I already wrote the next chapter. I was thinking I'll update it on Friday probably. Friday's my usual update day.  
**


	5. Chapter 5

Ziva went from the hospital to NCIS without a break. Her visit was short. She just needed a few stitches and she was good to go. Tony did her the favor of stopping by her apartment to grab some clean clothes for her. No one was expecting her back at work so soon though. When she stepped out of the elevator, looking as good as any other normal morning, she was greeted by shocked looks from McGee, DiNozzo and the director.

"Ziva, I gave you a week off," Gibbs whispered to her as she sat down at her desk.

"There was no need for time off. The doctors said I was fine," Ziva replied, faking a cheerful smile.

Gibbs looked to Tony, who stood up, knowing what was about to happen. Tony crossed over to Ziva's desk quickly and stood beside Gibbs.

Tony was looking at his boss, who was staring off at a wall in the distance. Gibbs spoke first, avoiding Ziva's eye contact, "I have to ask you..."

"a few questions," Ziva finished for him, "I am aware of the procedure Gibbs. "

Gibbs signaled for her to follow him. Ziva, Tony, and Gibbs went into the conference room for privacy. Gibbs nodded to Tony, who seemed very nervous, "They uh... they did a rape kit at the hospital but um..."

Ziva did not wait for him to finish, "He did not."

"Are you sure?" Tony asked awkwardly.

Ziva nodded, closing her eyes as if trying to recall the painful memories, "He was going to but you got there in time."

"Is there anything you can tell us about him?" Gibbs asked.

"I am afraid not. It was always very dark and he did not say much," Ziva said slowly. She looked up at Gibbs, "I did ask what it was he wanted."

"What did he say?" Gibbs responded.

"He said your name."

Tony glanced at Gibbs, who had no reaction. Ziva studied his face for a moment but Gibbs simply nodded, "Okay. Are you sure you want to stay at work?"

Ziva stood up and Gibbs nodded again, leading the way out of the room. Tony's arm stopped Ziva from following him though. "Ziva," Tony said, his voice low and soft, "You know that I'm here if you ever need to talk, right?"

Ziva nodded, "Yes." Tony lowered his arm and Ziva took a deep breath before adding, "Thank you, Tony."

~-~

Abby's arms caught Ziva in a rib-crushing hug, "You're back!"

Ziva pushed her off politely and gently, "Abby, please, I am fine." Gibbs came in behind Ziva, quickly followed by McGee and DiNozzo.

"Gibbs! I have something for you!" Abby said happily. She stepped in front of her computer and typed quickly, bringing up the results. The screen brought up a finger print match. Abby opened the results to reveal the familiar face of Jason Scotts (which, they also discovered, was not his real name). Ziva's spine stiffened.

Abby rambled on, explaining whatever it was she had discovered that would soon lead to a twist in the case, but Ziva couldn't concentrate. Tony's eyes drifted over to were Ziva stood but her found that she was gone. He turned around to see her heading for the elevator. Tony stepped forward to follow her but Gibbs' hand found his shoulder. Tony glanced at Gibbs who shook his head. "Give her space," Gibbs mumbled so only Tony could hear. Their attention went back to Abby, who had continued talking without even realizing their lack of attention.

"So there had to be someone else in that basement," Abby finished. Gibbs nodded, knowing the only important information was that last line. Abby smiled proudly and Gibbs pecked her cheek as he often did.

"Good work Abby. Go home, get some sleep," Gibbs said, walking out. Tony followed close behind him. Getting upstairs, McGee informed them that the house Ziva was held at was registered to a Michael Woodly.

"Does he live alone, McGee?" Gibbs asked.

"Um... his wife, Eliza, deceased. No children." McGee responded, "a car was stolen from a house three blocks away. I just got the police report. Around 12:30 Mr. James Marshal turned on his car. He went back inside to grab his wallet and working equipment and when he got back the car was gone."

"Put out a BOLO for the car," Gibbs called to McGee, grabbing his coat and heading for the elevator, "then both of you get home." The elevator doors closed behind Gibbs.

McGee stood up, not needing to be told twice. He typed quickly and pressed the enter button rather hard while putting on his jacket, "I'm meeting a girl tonight."

"Oh," Tony said, not really interested.

"She's blond, really pretty," McGee went on.

"What are you waiting for then?" DiNozzo answered. His eyes drifted around the emptying room in search of Ziva.

"Are you okay, Tony?" McGee asked.

"I'm fine, McGee. Better than ever," he responded sarcastically.

"Jealous?" McGee laughed. He didn't wait for a response as he headed towards the elevator. Tony stood up and crossed to Ziva's desk. Her stuff was still here so she didn't leave yet. Tony searched the agency until he came to the bathroom. He could hear muffled crying from inside. _Always did have good ears_, DiNozzo thought to himself proudly. He pushed open the girls room door.

"Ziva?" Tony said quietly. He immediately heard some movement behind one stall as Ziva shifted uncomfortably. With no regards to her privacy, Tony got down on the floor and slipped under the stall's door. Ziva was against the wall, her head between her knees. Tony slid over next to her carefully. Very slowly, he put an arm over her shoulder. Ziva looked up at him for a moment and Tony's stomach dropped when he noticed the tears streaming down her face. Ziva pressed her face into his shoulder and cried. Tony couldn't help but think how un-Ziva-ish that was. She was the strong one, physically and emotionally. She was the brave one, the one who never broke down. Yet here she was, sobbing in Tony's arms.

"Tony," Ziva whispered, "...I am afraid."

Tony pulled her into a sideways hug. They sat like that for a long time before Tony began to get up, "It's late. You should get home."

Ziva avoided his gaze, "I am going to stay here and finish some paper work."

"It's past eleven. Save it for tomorrow," Tony said, holding out a hand to help her up.

"I can do it now," Ziva responded quickly. _Too quickly_, Tony thought to himself.

"I'll help you," Tony offered.

Ziva shook her head, "Really Tony, it is fine. I can handle it." Tony's eyes narrowed. He could tell Ziva was holding back something. She wiped her eyes quickly and nodded to herself, "I can handle it."

"I'll do it, Ziva. You should get some sleep," Tony said, more forcefully than before. He used her shoulder to guide her out.

"I can do it, Tony. I can do my own work. I do not need help!" Ziva said almost angrily. Tony nodded understandingly.

"Ziva, come on," Tony said softly.

"Tony, I-"

"You don't want to be in your apartment alone right now, I get it Ziva. Stop trying to act like you're not scared. It's okay if you don't want to go home yet, why don't you just say so?" Tony said slowly. Ziva frowned. She did not want to cry again. Tears were for the weak. Tony took her hand, "You can stay with me."

Ziva looked up in shock. Tony was hardly ever this nice. Usually he just joked or goofed around, "Tony, I could not."

"Yes you can," Tony responded, "Of course you can."


	6. Chapter 6

Ziva woke up feeling oddly safe. For a while, she couldn't figure out why. Then she realized it: a strong muscled arm was wrapped securely around her waist. Tony was asleep next to her, holding her body very close to his in a rather protective way. Her first instinct was to push away from him but she didn't. It was the first time she felt safe since she was attacked, which bothered her more than it would bother most people. Ziva always knew she was strong, especially when compared to most other girls. Men often underestimated her, which she used to her advantage.

_**Beep. Beep. Beep. **_

Ziva's Mossad training caused her to grab her gun. Tony, however, barely looked up as his hand smacked his bedside table blindly before he found the snooze button on his alarm clock. Relaxing, Ziva returned her weapon to the table next to her and laid back down. She did not get to comfortable though. The weight shifted as Tony sat up and stretched. He wandered into the next room, the bathroom. It was connected to the bedroom by a plain white door. Ziva watched him as he fixed his hair in the mirror and brushed his teeth. He came out cheerfully and held out his hand to help her out of the bed, "Breakfast?"

Ziva smiled warmly. It was a real smile. Tony smiled back and lead her to his kitchen as he began preparing food. It was good to see her smile. He had to admit he was exhausted after spending the night with her. After working with Ziva for years, it was not until last night he realized just how fragile she really was. It scared the hell out of him last night when she started screaming in her sleep, begging someone or something to "stop". She tossed and turned, panting. Tony took her hand and tried talking to her for hours but it was useless. It wasn't until the early morning hours that she calmed down. Tony had felt so useless though. He had never been so scared for someone before. Ziva's accented voice broke through Tony's thoughts, "Thank you, for letting me stay here."

"No problem," Tony said with a smile. The two of them ate quickly and left. After a quick stop so Ziva could change and clean up at her apartment, Tony drove her to work.

~-~

The team met up in Abby's lab sometime later. McGee informed them that the BOLO on the car hadn't turned up any results yet. The team worked for hours trying to find something when they were not even aware of what they were looking for. Gibbs actually looked stressed, even with his coffee at hand. He gave continue worried glances over to Ziva, who had her head down as she worked on some files.

Abby jumped around the table showing them everything she had(which was not much...) with her usual enthusiasm. She concluded her little speech by hugging Ziva and saying, "Don't worry! We'll catch Woodly!"

At the sound of his name Ziva went pale, "Abby, please, let me go." Abby stepped back as soon as she spoke. Ziva glanced up to Gibbs, "I am going to take my lunch break now." With that, Ziva turned to leave.

"Uh..." Gibbs said slowly, "Why don't we all take a lunch break now?"

DiNozzo and McGee agreed: food breaks were always good. The two headed out, DiNozzo was on Ziva's tail to make sure she was okay while McGee headed to the vending machine. Abby, after saying by to Gibbs, headed for her car.

There was a local bar that just opened right around the corner from the Navel Yard. She had been meaning to try it out for a while now. Of course, she wouldn't be trying their drinks right now but a small sandwich never hurt. She just wanted to check the place out.

Abby jumped out of her car and was about to walk in. A young man walked past her carrying several heavy looking boxes. His left arm was bandaged up, clearly broken.

"Oh, here!" Abby said, taking some of the boxes, "Let me help you!"

The man gave her a friendly smile, "Thank you so much. I'm moving in with my fiancé today." He seemed excited and Abby smiled back. She did love helping people. The man turned up the alley between the bar and a local cell phone store.

"If you could just open the back door to my van," He asked. Abby gave a cheerful smile glad to help him. She leaned over and opened the van door before hearing a small crash behind her. Two strong arms lifted her from the floor and threw Abby in the back of the van. Abby swung her feet, aiming for between his legs but two arms stretched out from the back of the van itself and grabbed her feet. The two men lifted her into the dark space, holding her down as they injected her with something. Soon the room started spinning and she passed out.


	7. Chapter 7

"Locked on target," Ziva said into the small earpiece. Gibbs ordered her to hold fire as peered through the back door. Ziva's fingers grew tense around the trigger. One shot would be all it took to get her revenge and save Abby.

The team realized Abby was missing very quickly. While McGee wasted time trying to trace a cell phone signal and DiNozzo spent valuable time putting a BOLO out on her car, Gibbs had sat very still and gazed out the window with a coffee in his hand. He was busy searching his memory for something Abby said that would give him a place to start. It had actually been Ziva that triggered his memory when she suggest Tony take the picture of 'the man' to local stores, delis or bars. When she mentioned the bar, Gibbs recalled Abby talking about a new place opening nearby that she had wanted to check out.

He got there fast and looked over the scene. The bar itself was clean and new, the alley on the left of it held a large dumpster and the alley on the right held a few empty boxes and a van. There was nothing to really suggest a struggle. From his gut, Gibbs knew something was wrong here but other than that, the scene was fine. Gibbs had just begun to turn around when the red lights came up on the van and it sped towards him quickly. He jumped out of the way just in time to avoid getting run over. By the time Gibbs had gotten back up, the van was half way down the road and he jumped in his car and followed.

So now, after an hour of tailing the van, and another twenty minutes of calling Tony, McGee and Ziva, Gibbs was peering in the back of the house with McGee on his side. Ziva was stationed across the street, her gun was aimed perfectly through the window to hit the man inside. Tony was getting ready to enter the front door at Gibbs signal. The earpieces made it easy to communicate so even Ziva was hearing the countdown.

"One, two, thr-" They were cut off by a loud gunshot. Ziva's head perked up and she could see movement behind the windows. Tony kicked in the front door, his gun raised. Gibbs kicked in the back door and McGee followed him inside the house.

"Abby!" Tony's voice screamed.

"Abby!" McGee echoed from the other side of the house. McGee pushed the door to the left of him. Abby was standing up in the center of the room. There was blood spatter against the walls and on the floor in front of her was an unidentified man. Across the room was another man with his hands half raised as Abby pointed the gun at him. Her arms were shaking violently as Gibbs entered the room with Tony close behind. McGee kept his gun on the man at the end of the room while Tony scooted forward and aimed his at the man too. Gibbs put his gun in his left hand and shifted across the room carefully to where Abby was standing. He kicked the gun away from the man on the floor and towards Tony. Very slowly, Gibbs raised his hands around Abby and carefully lowered her arms.

"I had to, Gibbs," Abby was saying slowly. Her words were shaky and her voice unsure, as if she were waiting for Gibbs to agree with her. Gibbs nodded as he took the gun from her slowly and handed it off to McGee.

"Tony, read him his rights," Gibbs whispered as he pushed Abby towards the door.

"Uh... boss?" McGee said slowly.

"What, McGee?" Gibbs answered annoyed.

"He's not the - " McGee said slowly. Gibbs cut him off before McGee could point out that neither of the men in here were Michael Woodly.

"I know, McGee," Gibbs muttered before leaving the room. Looking at Abby out of the corner of his eye, he could tell already that she was basically okay. Her hair had fallen out of its pigtails and her makeup was smudged, but the only real injury was a slight bruise he could see developing under her eye. Her lip was slightly bloody and her arm had a few scratches but other than that she seemed okay.

Ziva was waiting in the doorway of the house. As soon as Gibbs turned the corner with Abby, her gun lowered and her mouth opened. "No," Gibbs said before she could even ask if they caught him.

Abby was taken off in the back of an ambulance and McGee with her. Gibbs was driving Tony and Ziva back to the agency. His mind was not on the road though, he was deep in through, remembering back to the last time someone wanted to get back at him for something

Caitlin Todd was always a good agent. She certainly was strong, like Ziva is, and she was targeted in an attempt to get to Gibbs. Just like last time, Abby was the next target when Ari had tried shooting her through her lab's window.

"Boss!" Tony's voice broke Gibbs train of though.

"What, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked in annoyance.

"That car has been following us," Ziva said quietly from the back seat.

"Which car?" Gibbs muttered, glancing through his rear view mirror.

"Two cars back, black Honda. It began following us when we got back on the main road," Ziva responded, overly observant as usual.

Gibbs made a sharp left and sure enough, the Honda followed. They were on the highway now, so not much could happen. _Unless he sticks a gun out the window and shoots, _Gibbs thought. Tony seemed to have the same idea.

"Should we have our guns aimed, boss?"

"He will not shoot while we are driving, Tony," Ziva said. Tony opened his mouth to argue but Ziva went on, "It would not satisfy him to kill all three of us at once. He would want Gibbs to suffer that we died because of him." She said the last part in a lower tone, as if trying to protect Gibbs' feelings.

The Honda, however, was switching lanes. Gibbs kept his eye on it as it pulled up alongside their car. The driver was wearing a large hat and sunglasses. Gibbs looked away just as the Honda bumped the side of his car. The driver was slowly turning into Gibbs' car so as to drive them off the road.

"Seatbelt," Gibbs yelled to Tony.

"Boss, just turn here," Tony pointed at small road that lead off the highway. Gibbs knew this would be pointless because the Honda would follow them but he turned anyway, since staying on the highway would just endanger more people.

"Seatbelt," Gibbs repeated. Tony clicked on his seatbelt and a click from the back was heard a second later as Ziva buckled up too. Gibbs glanced at Ziva, who was focused on the Honda, "How many people are in the car?"

"It looks like four," Ziva answered her boss.

"Armed?"

"I cannot tell," Ziva responded. There were a few minutes of silence as they all watched the car following them. Finally, Ziva spoke again, "Gun!"

Sure enough, a gun was being aimed out of the passenger window. Ziva ducked her head down and Gibbs pushed down Tony's head while slouching over in the seat.

"I though you said they wouldn't shoot!" Tony yelled to Ziva.

"They are not aiming for us, they are aiming for the car," Ziva responded. No sooner had she finished her sentence then the tires of the car went out. At first, Gibbs kept going at the same speed, if not then faster. Soon they could all feel the car slowing as a second tire went out.

"Hurry up," Gibbs instructed, grabbing his gun and jumping out of the car. Tony and Ziva were close behind. Gibbs had done a good job at putting some distance between the car and them. The three of them ran into the trees that had been alongside the road. It was better cover than the car could have provided.

Ziva would never admit she was scared, but Tony and Gibbs could tell from the way her hands were shaking with the gun. The first shot was fired and before they knew it, gunshots were going off in every direction. Ziva's eyes kept glancing around, seeking out the slightest brush of wind that might conceal Woodly.

Finally, shots died down. Ziva could not tell who had won. Tony's voice came from somewhere to the left of her, "Boss, I'm out of bullets."

"Shush DiNozzo," Gibbs voice came from the same side. There was a clang of metal to her right, and three other clangs followed it. Apparently, the other side was all out of shots too. Ziva stepped silently over to where she had heard Tony.

"It is hand to hand now," Gibbs whispered as Ziva approached. Almost as soon as he finished, a figure threw a punch at Tony. Gibbs had gone to help him but another man began swinging at Gibbs. Ziva froze for a moment, trying to decide who to help, when a third figure stepped out. He was an easy opponent but in the fighting, the three had moved away from eachother. Ziva threw a hard kick between the man's legs and he fell to the floor. Before she could finish the fight, through, hands grabbed her from behind. They pulled her wrists behind her back and she could feel breath on her neck.

"It's been too long, Miss. David," he whispered, his free hand stroking up her side. Ziva squirmed but her attempts made him smile. "Don't pretend you didn't miss me," he laughed. Ziva let out a small, nearly silent cry as her memory flooded back.

And that small cry was all it took. Ziva fell to her knees as the hands from behind her disappeared. She turned around to see Tony had punched Woodly in the stomach and currently kicked him over. Ziva had watched Tony fight before, but this time was different. As Tony always followed rule nine, he pulled a knife out of his pocket and she could see Woodly's pain as Tony the evil man's shoulder. Ziva jumped up, ready and willing to help but Tony saw her out of the corner of his eye.

"Go."

His voice was firm and demanding. It was full of authority. There was more authority in that one word than every order he had ever given out put together. Ziva froze, feeling obligated to follow the order.

Tony turned back to the fight, seeing Ziva backing away. Once Ziva was out of sight, he looked back to Woodly, who was using the time he was given to pull the knife out of his shoulder.

"You can't protect her, Special Agent DiNozzo. I _always _ get what I want," He laughed a sinister laugh. Tony threw his fist into the man's stomach. Tony sent a punch to the side of the head and Woodly feel to the ground.

"Another time then," Woodly said. Tony was confused for a minute as he leaned forward to handcuff Woodly. As soon as he was within range though, Woodly had swung back the knife that Tony had been stupid enough to leave on the floor. There was a sharp pain in Tony's leg as he fell to the ground, the red color surrounding him as he lay in the pile of dead leaves and moss.

Tony could feel the blood draining out. He knew that the knife had punctured the artery in his leg. Trees became shapes and the shapes slowly faded in color. Brown back went to a light gray, then a darker gray, until finally it was a jet black color.

"Tony! It is going to be okay, Tony. Answer me," he listened to the familiar accent as he drifted off into darkness.


	8. Chapter 8

Ziva could not scream for help knowing the enemy could be lurking anywhere nearby. Instead she kept her voice low trying to pacify Tony. His eyes shut tightly in pain and he groaned. "Tony," She whispered, "It's going to be okay, Tony. Answer me."

A soft moan escaped Tony's lips as the brown leaves were painted crimson red. Ziva pulled off the sweatshirt she had been wearing and tore the sleeve. She tied it tightly just above the wound to cut off the blood flow. Her hands started shaking as she put pressure on the wound. A soft hand pulled her away she turned to see Gibbs. He pushed her carefully off Tony and knelt down next to him. Gibbs tied the knot tighter, cutting off the blood flow more than Ziva had been able too. His hand touched Tony's hair in a fatherly way before he stood up.

"Help's on the way," Gibbs informed her. Ziva nodded absentmindedly. Her hands , covered in blood, held onto a tree as she stood, staring at the unconscious Tony. Gibbs pulled her into a gentle hug, "He'll be okay." Once Gibbs pulled away, he patted her shoulder and told her she did a good job cutting off the blood flow.

~-~-~

The emergency room was crowded as Ziva sat waiting for news. She sat, head in hands, muttering Hebrew prayers. McGee joined her and Abby sat next to him (just released from the hospital herself). Tears streaming down the Goth's face, she leaned on McGee's shoulder.

"Tony is going to be okay, guys!" She said wiping her eyes, "He's always okay."

"...he survived the plague, he can survive this," McGee mumbled.

"He survived his car booming up," Ziva added.

"...blowing up, Ziva, blowing," McGee said absent mindedly. Ziva nodded without caring. Gibbs walked into the room. As usual, he had perfect posture as he gracefully crossed the room. He took the seat to the right of Ziva and closed his eyes.

"He's alive," Gibbs sighed, "The doctors said he should be up in a few hours, and if we're lucky, he'll be out of the hospital in a few weeks."

Abby's arms wrapped around Gibbs, "I knew it! I told you he'd be okay, McGee!"

"He is not okay," Ziva said quietly. Her eyes were unfocused on the wall across from her.

"Ziva!" Abby said, now hugging McGee cheerfully, "Of course he's okay! He'll be out in a few weeks."

"He almost died, Abby," Ziva responded. With that, she stood up and left the room. Ziva walked to the room they were keeping Tony in and sat down. Her room was dark, lit only by the machines around them. The only sounds were Tony's deep breaths and Ziva's soft, quick ones.

~-~

Ziva used to enjoy the peaceful silence of her apartment. It was such a contrast to Israel, where yelling and fighting were constant sounds. And although Ziva would never admit it, the silence now scared her. She felt defenseless. The thought that she had gone down not once, but twice, with hardly any fight at all, was terrifying. Mossad trained her not to believe in fear, yet Ziva sat on her couch, jumping at every noise. The shadows seemed to jump out at her. Every shape was the perfect place for the psychotic man to be hiding, just waiting to attack.

Ziva grabbed a book, in an attempt to distract herself, and began to read. She got all the way to the seventh page before the sound of glass breaking cause her to look up. She stared at the door across the room that lead to her bedroom. To the left of her she could see the front door: her escape. Her bedroom door knob turned slowl.

Ziva decided not to wait to find out what the noise was or why the doorknob was turning. Grabbing her car keys, she ran from the apartment without even pausing to lock the door. Within minutes, Ziva was opening Gibbs' front door, knowing it was never locked. She found him exactly where she expected too: his basement. The place was a sanctuary to Gibbs. Yet another boat was being built in the middle of the room. To this day no one knew the mystery of how he got the boats out of the basement.

Gibbs knew Ziva was there but he didn't turn around to face her. He let her sit down in the middle of his steps as he focused on the boat, waiting patiently until she spoke.

"He was in my apartment," Ziva said more quickly than Gibbs expected her too. The comment caught him off guard and he turned around.

"Where?"

" I heard glass break in my apartment and then someone was trying to get out of my bedroom and -" Ziva spoke in one breath. Gibbs placed a hand on her shoulder and lead her to the car. He pushed her into the passenger seat and drove faster than she herself ever had, while on the phone calling for back up. Leading her up to her apartment, he pushed open her unlocked door. Holding Ziva close behind him, Gibbs explored the room. The living room was exactly house Ziva had left it, and the bedroom door was still tightly shut. Gibbs entered the bedroom and Ziva followed.

"There is no broken glass," Gibbs noted.

"Gibbs I heard-"

"Is anything missing or moved, Ziva?" Gibbs asked.

"No but -"

Gibbs interrupted her, "Did you see him?"

"Gibbs I heard-"

"Did you see him, Agent David?" Gibbs asked firmly.

"No, but I know what I heard and -"

"Ziva," Gibbs interrupted yet again, "What if you were wrong? You're worried that he is there and you're-"

"trusting my gut," Ziva responded confidently.

"Paranoid," Gibbs responded, slightly annoyed, "And I don't think you should be alone here."

"Leave," Ziva said suddenly.

"Excuse me?"

"Leave," Ziva repeated, "Get out of my apartment. Now."

Gibbs hesitated but turned away, calling off the backup as he left the apartment. Ziva locked the door behind him and sat down. Ziva tried replaying what happened in her mind. Had she just imagined it? Was she going crazy?

Ziva stayed up the whole night, happy to begin her morning jog as the sun peaked over the horizon.


	9. Chapter 9

Ziva knew what they were talking about. Every time she entered the office, McGee and Abby would quickly turn away and their voices hushed. Gibbs would glance at her throughout the day. They all thought they were getting away with it but Ziva noticed.

Abby seemed so fine. Sure, she cried the first few hours she was safe, but she seemed to be basically okay. Here Ziva was, jumping at every noise, while Abby was perfectly content to sit in her lab alone. In fact, she even blasted music, which made it easy to sneak up on her.

It went on like this for over two weeks. The muffled conversations, the worried glances, and the lack of direct conversation. Ziva sat alone in wonder. What really happened that night? Was someone really there? Did she imagine it?

Abby stopped at her desk on her way home one night, "Ziva?"

Ziva looked up from the paperwork she was filing, "Yes, Abby?"

"Are you going to the agency Christmas party tomorrow night?"

Ziva thought for a moment. She wasn't even away that there _was_ an agency Christmas party tomorrow night. "No, Abby," Ziva said slowly, "I am Jewish."

"You can still come," Abby said eagerly, "Tony is going to be there! I mean, he'll be in a wheelchair still but he's coming and you _have _to go Ziva!"

"Alright, Abby, I will attend this, Christmas party," Ziva agreed.

"Great, we're all going to meet at the bar first, and its casual dressing!" Abby smiled as she headed toward the elevator.

~-~

Ziva skipped the bar and went straight to the agency party. She found Tony, as Abby had said, in a wheelchair on the side. Ziva had crossed over to where he was and picked up a conversation. Abby was dancing with McGee on the large dance floor, which was simply the conference room minus the table. Gibbs was seated in one of the chairs on the side, sipping a drink and watching the party. Even Ducky managed to attend, as he danced with one of the young lawyers who worked with the agency.

Gibbs laughed as Ducky twirled the lawyer under his arm. Yet, despite the wide grin on Gibbs' face, his gut was telling him something was wrong. His eyes darted around the room, locating all the people he cared about. Ducky, Tony, Ziva, Abby and McGee, all here and all safe. It wasn't until the director tapped him on the shoulder that his suspicions were correct, "Miss. Sciuto's ID was just used to enter the parking garage ten minutes ago, but I swear I saw her come in with you over a half hour ago."

"So someone broke into the agency?" Gibbs asked calmly.

"Are you sure she didn't leave and come back, Jethro?" The director asked.

"I'm positive, Leon," Gibbs replied.

"And he is correct," a familiar voice said from the shadows. The sound of a gunshot silenced the room. Heads turned to see what was it but soon it became clear the bullet was simply to silence the radio. Gibbs was immediately up, ready to fight. He felt for his gun before remembering he left it at his desk. The director, however, had a gun drawn at him. McGee was standing slightly in front of Abby protectively and Ziva shifted closer to Tony. Woodly was clearly good at using his surroundings, no one was quiet sure where he was. Another shot was fired and the room cleared. Most people ducked to the ground while others headed for the exit. In the confusion, Gibbs lost sight of his team.

"It's funny," Woodly's voice came again, "That you still think you can win."

"Oh, we will," Gibbs replied calmly.

"You sound confident."

"We are confident," Gibbs responded. He still couldn't figure out where the voice was coming from, "If you're so sure we won't, why not come out and fight?"

"Miss me, Ziva?" He whispered to the Israeli. All eyes turned to where Ziva was standing. She was in the corner of the room, beside Tony. Woodly grabbed onto her wrist and held her in front of him as a human shield. The Director kept his gun aimed waiting for an opening. Ziva's foot swung back, hitting him between the legs. It was a hard impact, which was disappointing for he had been so sure he had already broken Ziva. It was not a big deal though, he would just have to break her again. And this time, make sure she stayed broken. His strong hands didn't release her wrist as he muttered curses in pain. He pulled her closer to him so she couldn't pull off another kick.

"I could take you right here, you know?" He threatened. Ziva refused to show pain as she looked to the Director, silently giving him the 'okay' to shoot. Woodly's hand traced up Ziva's waist, but his eyes were locked on Gibbs, enjoying Gibbs' anger.

No one saw it happen, but suddenly Tony's fist found the side of Woodly's face. Ziva was released and her leg swung around, hitting Woodly into the wall hard. Gunshots were fired from around the room. No one could tell who was shooting and who was being hit. Tony tackled Ziva and held her beneath him, ignoring the pain he felt in his injured leg.

"Get up, DiNozzo," Gibbs said finally, helping Tony back to the wheelchair.

"Did we get him?" Tony asked as Gibbs helped Ziva up.

"No," Gibbs replied. Then he turned to the Director, "and I want to know how the _hell_ he got in here and how the hell he got out!"

"Security breech," The director responded calmly.


	10. Chapter 10

"A security breech, Leon? How does someone break into the agency!" Gibbs yelled once the office door closed.

"I don't know, Jethro. The press –"

"Screw the effin press!" Gibbs yelled before lowering his voice, "Leon, Ziva is hurt. Do you see the fear behind her eyes? She is a strong girl. I am already having enough trouble trying to get her back on her game. She needs to know she is safe here."

"And Ms. Sciuto," Vance added while fixing the paperwork on his desk, "You don't seem so worried about her."

"I know if I tell Abby it is fine she'll believe me. Abby trusts me to handle things. Ziva needs to handle things on her own or she won't calm down," Gibbs explained, "Vance, I need – "

Gibbs demands were cut off by the ring from Vance's phone, which Vance answered immediately, "Vance… yes… he is with me, we're on our way." Vance put the phone down and opened the second drawer of his desk, pulling out a gun and loading it, "They found his car."

"NCIS STEP OUT OF THE VEHICLE," Gibbs called. It was a large and empty parking lot of a mall. The parking lot itself was two stories and it was like a maze. Gibbs knew Vance was to his left and McGee was behind him, but the rest of his team was lost in parking garage. Gibbs only hopped Tony was smart enough to stick with Ziva.

A man stepped out of the car with his hands raised and Gibbs recognized him at once: Woodly. His finger itched to pull the trigger but Vance's voice took over and Gibbs followed his lead for once, "Place your weapon on the ground and put your hands behind your head Woodly."

The gun was being lowered when the sound of gunshots spilt the silence. A loud echo followed in Tony's voice, "Ziva!"

Vance did not move but Gibbs ran to the door across the parking lot and took the stairs up two at a time. When he pulled the door open to the second floor, he could see Tony on the floor holding Ziva. A man was laying face down with a bullet wound in his chest.

"Ziva!" Gibbs called as he ran over.

"She's alright boss," Tony said quickly, taking a step back to show Gibbs that she was not hurt.

"What happened, DiNozzo?"

"I don't know, I didn't see," Tony answered. Ziva was kneeling on the floor running her fingers through her hair.

"There were two of them and one, the one I shot, raised a gun. I said to lower it but he would not," Ziva whispered.

Gibbs walked over and examined the scene, "Ziva, give me your gun."

"What?"

"You're gun, Ziva. Now," Gibbs repeated.

"Boss," Tony said in a low tone, clearly taking Ziva's side.

"There is no gun on him, DiNozzo," Gibbs whispered before Tony could argue. Ziva handed Gibbs her gun reluctantly, "And your spare." Ziva pulled a second gun out and handed it to him. Gibbs rolled his eyes, "All of your spares David." Ziva pulled a third gun out of her boot and a fourth that was hidden in her shirt as McGee and Vance came up through the staircase.

"The shots gave him opportunity to run. He got away," Vance said, "Everything alright here?"

"Perfect," Tony said bitterly, helping Ziva up and leading her to the car, "Just perfect."


	11. Chapter 11

Ziva fell to the couch. She buried her face in her hand for a moment, muttering angrily in Hebrew, before punching her sofa cushion. She had seen a gun, she knew she had. Same as she knew she heard the glass break in her bedroom.

"Ziva, it wasn't your fault," Tony said from her apartment doorway.

"I saw a gun Tony," Ziva whispered, "I know I saw a gun."

Tony sighed and closed her apartment door, letting himself come inside, "It's been a while since I've been in here."

"How is your leg doing? I think Gibbs was mad that he had let you go today after your injury," Ziva said.

"Eh I'm fine really. Takes more than a paper cut to keep me down," Tony said with a wink, "You going to be alright?"

"I'll be fine, Tony. You can go home," Ziva replied.

Tony frowned at her lie but nodded, "If you need anything, you can just call and I'll be over here in a second."

"Thank you," Ziva responded. Tony looked over at her as he opened her apartment door. She was looking the other way, gazing outside her window at the rain just starting to drizzle down. He backed out of her apartment with his eyes fixed on her when something cold pressed against his back.

"Go back in, _Anthony DiNozzo_," a man's voice commanded as he pressed the front of the gun into Tony's back. Ziva had already stood up from the voice. Her hand reached instinctively for her gun before she remembered Gibbs had taken it and her spares.

Tony reentered the room, his hands raised in the air and he stepped defensively in front of Ziva, "What do you want?"

"Sit down and shut up," the man said. Tony took a seat on the couch and pulled Ziva down next to him, pushing her behind him.

"Not her. She comes with me," the man said keeping his gun raised.

"If you're after a hostage, I'm the senior field agent. I'd be worth more. She's just a probie," Tony responded. He could feel Ziva's tension as she struggled to find words.

"I told you to get up, David," he said, mispronouncing her last name.

"Da-vee-d," Tony corrected automatically.

"I will not say it again," he said. There was a pause while he waited for Ziva to move. When she didn't, he took a step forward to grab her. Tony stood up, getting in his way.

"Don't make me shoot you, DiNozzo," he said trying to push Tony aside.

"If you want her, you'll have to," Tony replied before realizing how stupid the comment was. The man threw the first punch, hitting Tony in the stomach. He twisted Tony around and grabbed him in a headlock, holding the gun to his head.

"Are you going to come, David?"

"Da-vee-d," Tony muttered in pain. The man tightened his grip on Tony. Tony's eyes were on Ziva, who, in fear, had begun to stand up. Tony smiled before winking at her. He swung his arm back, elbowing the man in the stomach. Ziva reached forward and grabbed the gun from him before he could shoot. Tony kicked him away and Ziva shot four bullets from the gun, hitting him straight in the chest. Tony stepped over and took the gun from her, pulling her into a hug.

Police arrived on the scene in seconds as the neighbors reported the gunshots. Tony sat with them and gave them stories. They questioned Ziva a little bit to compare stories but overall, Tony handled it. Tony reported in to Gibbs, who arrived within twenty minutes.

"You shot the gun," Gibbs told Tony.

"She shot the gun, boss," Tony explained.

"That's two people in one day. You're sure she was under attack?"

"He had a gun to my head. Yes I am sure!" Tony responded. Gibbs nodded and rubbed his eyes in frustration.

"Alright. Um... call McGee and get him here. Make him figure out who that guy is," Gibbs said, walking away.

"This isn't our jurisdiction, boss," Tony pointed out, "He's not a marine."

"I don't care, DiNozzo," Gibbs replied, "just call McGee and call Abby too, Ziva is going to need a place to say."

"Boss, are you alright?"

"I'm fine, DiNozzo," Gibbs said, "Call them and wait with Ziva." Gibbs turned and left the room before Tony could determine what was wrong. Tony turned back and walked over to Ziva, sending a text to McGee and Abby. McGee answered first saying he was on his way over. Tony waited with Ziva in a café across the street from her apartment for twenty-five minutes before Abby finally answered that she was at a party but she is on her way now.

When the black car pulled up, Tony put Ziva in the car and waved her off before heading back inside to help McGee fight the police for evidence.


	12. Chapter 12

_Do you really want to die – die – die? Do you really want to die – die –die? One death, one life, are you sure do you really want to die? _(**A/N: Cause of Death: Suicide ~ Suicide Commando – Abby says she likes the band + you can hear the beat playing in her lab sometimes)**

Gibbs groaned and threw the sandpaper he was using to the floor. "I cannot believe she got that song stuck in my head," he muttered as his phone started to ring in his pocket. Before he could say a word, Tony's voice came through the phone.

"Abby just called," Tony said quickly, "someone was in her apartment."

Gibbs closed the phone and ran out to his car. Driving at his fastest, it still took a half hour to reach Abby's apartment. He calmed down when he saw Tony standing outside with Ziva and Abby.

"What happened?" Gibbs asked, getting out of his car.

"Police are inside now. The whole apartment was torn apart," Tony replied.

Gibbs glanced around, taking in the scene. "Abby, come with me. Tony, take Ziva."

"Got it, boss," Tony said right away.

"Tony- hotel room. No jokes, DiNozzo. If he could find Ziva's apartment and Abby's, he could find yours. Hotel, take a taxi. Pay cash. Turn off your cell phone too. I don't know how Woodly is doing this but you take every damn precaution there is."

Tony nodded. "Got it. Come on, Ziva." Gibbs watched the two of them get into a taxi before calling McGee.

"McGee, where are you?" Gibbs called into the phone.

"I'm at work… you had Tony call me to figure who the man was?" McGee replied.

Gibbs kept his eye on Abby, who was listening to music from her iPod and watching Gibbs closely. "Report," Gibbs demanded.

"He… well boss he was with the FBI, a senior agent," McGee replied.

"Stay at the agency tonight. Don't leave for any reason, McGee," Gibbs instructed.

"What happened?" McGee said quickly but Gibbs closed his phone and turned the power off. Abby jumped off the building steps and crossed to where Gibbs was.

"So what's the plan, Gibbster?" Abby asked.

"Come on," Gibbs replied, leading her near a taxi.

"Aw Gibbs," Abby said. She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry so much. We are all okay and we'll catch him. You always catch him. Everything will work out, Gibbs. It always does."

Gibbs kissed her forehead softly, "Thank you, Abby."

"Anytime Gibbs!" Abby smiled. "So where are we headed?"

"North," Gibbs responded, flagging down taxi and holding the door open for Abby. He took one last glance around the scene, his gut telling him that he was forgetting something very important. Finally he mumbled Abby's words back to himself, "Everything will work out."


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N**

**Aww! I'm sorry! I kind of had writers block with this story and I was kind of too busy working on my actual novel, **_**The Death Deities**_**, on inkpop and fictionpress (*cough* feel free to read it and review it *cough*). I'll be updating faster now though since the novel is finished and I'm only editing at this point. And since I have a few more ideas lined up. I am sorry about the wait though! I love all you guys that are still reading! **

** I think you're all going to want me dead for leaving you with the cliff hanger at the end of this chapter (NO SKIPPING TO THE END! Don't ruin it for yourselves) (/.^) (It's an emo happy face. Cute, right?)**

The night sky was cloudy and the road was dark and hard to drive on. Gibbs kept his eyes in front of him, watching his headlights illuminate the trees that lined the street. Abby was asleep in the seat next to him, her head resting on his shoulder lightly. The taxi driver had both hands on the wheel, trying to stay awake. Gibbs eyes were glued to the trees, waiting.

"Pull over here," Gibbs finally instructed. The driver stopped the car in the middle of the deserted road.

"You sure sir? Nothin's out 'ere."

"Stop here," Gibbs told him with a reassuring nod. The car pulled over and Gibbs thanked the driver, purposely taking his time to pay so that he could see if any cars were coming up behind him. Even with the headlights off, another car could be seen miles off. "Abby." Gibbs shook her awake. When she sat up, she rubbed her eyes, smearing make up on her hand.

"Where are we?"

Gibbs opened the car door and led her out, waving off the driver. "Middle of the highway."

"What's here, Gibbs?"

Gibbs began to lead the way through the thick forest, "An old safe house. I haven't used it since…I think before DiNozzo joined."

"Does anyone know about it?" Abby asked.

"Just me and Je- just me," Gibbs replied. Abby nodded and followed him through the forest silently. The trees towered over them, creating dark shadows, and an eerie fog had set in around them – perfect of Abby's taste.

After walking about half a mile through the trees in the cold night air, they finally came upon a small house. Gibbs knelt down in front of the door, pulling his pocket knife out. He picked the lock with ease and held the door open for Abby.

"There is a bedroom down the hall, and a bathroom on the left," Gibbs told her, locking the door behind them and then locking the deadbolt. Gibbs placed a chair in front of the door for extra protection and then closed all the window curtains around the house. He handed Abby a gun. "You are to sleep with that next to you, do you understand me?"

"What if you wake me up in the middle of the night for something?"

Gibbs crossed the room and lit a candle, trying to just enough light to get around and nothing more. "If I need to wake you up, I'll come on and take the gun before I wake you. If anyone else comes, they will have to break down the door and go through me, or you will hear the window glass breaking. Take the gun, Abby."

"…okay, but I don't like this, Gibbs," Abby replied.

Gibbs kissed her forehead softly, "I know. Try to sleep. I'll be right in here."

Abby took the candle he was holding out to her and started to walk down the hall. She paused just before entering her room. "Gibbs," Abby said, turning toward him slowly, "you know how you're always talking about gut feelings?"

"Yeah, Abs?"

Abby opened her door slowly before continuing, "I have one now."

"Well, what is your gut telling you?"

Abby sighed. "Something really, really bad is going to happen."

Gibbs stomach tightened, his gut silently agreeing with hers. "Go to bed, Abby. I'll be right in here."

"I know. Night Gibbs," Abby said, walking into her room. Gibbs sat against the couch, wishing he had some sort of prepaid phone to call DiNozzo with. He knew he was forgetting something, but he couldn't put his finger on what it was.

"Thank you," Tony said, handing the driver money. He entered the hotel with Ziva at his side. "Room for two please."

"Name?" the desk clerk said. He could not have been more then eighteen years old, probably working to pay off college debts.

"Theodore Demono," Tony lied.

"Rebecca," Ziva added.

"Cash or credit," the clerk replied, taking the names down.

"Cash."

"You're in room 114, up the stairs on the left. The elevator is down, sorry." The clerk handed them keys.

"No problem, my good sir," Tony said with a wink, "Come on Becky."

Ziva gave the clerk a friendly smile before following Tony up the stairs. Once in their room, Tony stopped, "I love how the kid did not ask us if we wanted one bed or two."

"He seemed young," Ziva replied as she shut the thick curtains. "Tony, can you move that dresser in front of the door."

"Trying to make a fire hazard, Zee-va," Tony joked.

"Block out any unwanted guests we may encounter," Ziva replied.

"Ziva, relax. I have the key in my pocket."

"Tony, think," Ziva countered. "There are many cleaning ladies with all access keys and that desk clerk would not be hard to get a key from."

"Oh yeah. Those cleaning ladies probably have such thick accents they-"

"I have an accent." Ziva cut him off.

"Right! Well, um… okay so you want this dresser in front of the door?" Tony replied.

"Yes. Just slide it over. I am going to move this bed out of the window's shot range," Ziva said as she began to push the bed across the room. Tony got the dresser in front of the door and smiled.

"Okay, we're good."

Ziva nodded. "Do you want to sleep first or shall I?"

"Huh?" Tony replied, "Ziva, the doors locked, deadbolted, and has that little chain thingy put in. The bed is out of the window's range and the curtains are closed. We are going to rotate sleep too?"

"Okay fine. You sleep. I will stay up," Ziva replied. She turned on the television and put the sound on mute.

"You sleep first," Tony said, throwing her a pillow. "I'll wake you up in a few hours, okay?"

Ziva just nodded, taking a spot on the bed next to her. Tony watched a full HBO movie and was just getting into a second one when his phone went off.

"Hey McGoo, what's up? …are you sure? …where? …I'm with Ziva, I'll tell her… No I don't know why Gibbs phone is off – ohh. Mine was supposed to be too. Shit. Well he is with Abby, try hers. I'll tell Ziva and meet you at the hospital." Tony hung up quickly and turned off the television, leaning over to wake Ziva up.

"Ready to switch?" Ziva asked sleepily as she sat up. One look at Tony's face changed her phrase completely, "Tony, what's wrong?"

"Ziva, we have to get to the hospital," Tony said slowly.

Ziva looked him in the eye. She could tell by his expression that someone was seriously hurt. "Who is it?" she asked nervously.

Gibbs was playing with his lighter. He flicked the flame on, off, on, off. His gaze was focused on the wall in front of him, listening to Abby's heavy breathing in the next room. He almost pulled his gun when her cell phone went off.

Gibbs picked it up, ready to ignore the call and turn off her phone. He was silently cursing to himself, realizing that anyone could be on their trail because of this. He opened the phone and put his finger on end, the caller ID catching his eye just in time.

Tim

Gibbs answered the phone in a low whisper, hoping he would be able to let Abby sleep. "Gibbs."

"…McGee calm down. Breathe and talk slower…" Gibbs said into the phone. McGee was talking way too fast for Gibbs to understand. He looked up to see a very sleepy Abby leaning against the doorway with questioning eyes.

"Which hospital?" Gibbs asked. Abby stood up straight but Gibbs kept talking, "We will be right there."

As soon as Gibbs shut the phone, Abby dumped all her questions on him. "Hospital? Who? Is Tony or Ziva? We could have taken them with us. This is all my fault. I knew something was wrong. We could have taken them here with us. There is more than enough room!"

"It's not Tony or Ziva," Gibbs replied. He reopened Abby's phone and peaked out curtains while he called a taxi to pick them up. Once he was positive there were no snipers hiding in the trees, he unlocked the door and read his location to the taxi service.

"Thank you," Gibbs said, closing the phone.

"Who is it, Gibbs?" Abby asked again. Gibbs turned around, his eyes filled with an emotion Abby had never seen on him before. "Gibbs, tell me who."

It clicked. Abby recognized the emotion in his eye. It was fear.

"It's Ducky."


End file.
